Masaaki Noiri pleased to treat Saitama crowd with statement TKO win over Thai icon at ONE 172: “What I was looking for”

Japanese kickboxing superstar Masaaki Noiri got what he came for during last week's historic ONE 172 inside the Saitama Super Arena in Japan.

The former two-division K-1 champion added the most prestigious prize in martial arts today, ONE gold, with a third-round finish of Tawanchai PK Saenchai in the co-main event of the spectacle.

While he was happy to walk away as the newly crowned ONE interim featherweight kickboxing world champion, the Team Vasileus start admits that wasn't his only goal as he arrived inside the legendary venue — he wanted to give the fans a fight to remember, too.

"I can say this because I won, but the excitement in the venue after I won was what I was looking for. That was when I knew I had done it," the Japanese superstar told My Navi News in an exclusive post-fight interview.

Apart from beating the current ONE featherweight Muay Thai world champion, handing him his second loss under the world's largest martial arts organization, and claiming a $50,000 performance bonus, Noiri became the first fighter to knock out the seemingly unstoppable Thai under the ONE banner.

Watch Masaaki Noiri's full interview below:

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Masaaki Noiri overjoyed by world title glory at ONE 172

During the same exchange with My Navi News, Masaaki Noiri touched on the signifcance of his world title accomplishment at ONE 172.

"Winning the world title meant a lot to me. It was at the top of my list. And now that I've gotten it, I think I've finally proven why I was the top contender. I jumped into the ring with the aim of becoming the strongest in the world, and I'm happy to prove that I'm one of the best now," he continued.

Noiri will lock horns with reigning kingpin Superbon in a ONE featherweight kickboxing world title unification contest down the line.

Fans can relive his epic finish and all the action from ONE 172: Takeru vs. Rodtang via replay at watch.onefc.com.